Jonas on a Farm in Winter eBook

Jonas was right, for, when the boys arrived at the
wood piles, they found there, waiting for them, a
large black dog. He stood near one end of a wood
pile, with his fore feet upon a log, by which his head
and shoulders were raised, so that he could see better
who was coming. He was of handsome form, and
he had an intelligent and good-natured expression
of countenance. He was looking very intently at
the party coming up, to see whether his master was
among them.

“Whose dog is that?” said Josey.

“I don’t know,” said Oliver; “I
never saw him before.”

“I wonder what his name is,” said Josey.
“Here! Towzer, Towzer, Towzer,” said
he.

“Here! Caesar, Caesar, Caesar,” said
Oliver.

“Pompey, Pompey, Pompey,” said Jonas.

[Illustration: “He was looking very intently
at the party coming up, to see whether his master
was among them.”]

The dog remained motionless in his position, until,
just as the boys had finished their calls, and as
the foremost sled was drawn pretty near him, he suddenly
wheeled around with a leap, and bounded away through
the snow, for half the length of the first wood pile,
and then stopped, and again looked round.

“I wish we had something for him to eat,”
said Jonas.

“I’ve got a piece of bread and butter,”
said Josey. “I went in and got it when
you and Oliver were unloading.”

So Josey took his bread and butter out of his pocket.
There were two small slices put together, and folded
up in a piece of paper. Jonas took a piece, and
walked slowly towards the dog.

“Here! Franco, Franco,” said Jonas.

“He’s coming,” said Josey, who remained
with Oliver at the sled.

The dog was slowly and timidly approaching the bread
which Jonas held out towards him.

“He’s coming,” said Josey.
“His name is Franco. I wonder how Jonas
knew.”

“Franco, Franco,” said Jonas again.
“Come here, Franco. Good Franco!”

The dog came timidly up to Jonas, and took the bread
and butter from Josey’s hand, and devoured it
eagerly. While he was doing it, Jonas patted
him on the head.

“He’s very hungry,” said Jonas;
“bring the rest of your bread and butter, Josey.”

So Josey brought the rest of his luncheon, and the
dog ate it all.

After this, he seemed to be quite at ease with his
new friends. He staid about there with the boys
until the sleds were loaded, and then he went down
home with them. There they fed him again with
a large bone. Jonas said that he was undoubtedly
a dog that had lost his master, and had been wandering
about to find him, until he became very hungry.
So he said they would leave him in the yard to gnaw
his bone, and that then he would probably go away.
Josey wanted to shut him up and keep him, but Jonas
said it would be wrong.

So the boys left the dog gnawing his bone, and went
up after another load; but before they had half loaded
their sleds, Oliver saw Franco coming, bounding up
the road, towards them. He came up to Jonas, and
stood before him, looking up into his face and wagging
his tail.